This invention relates to an electronic device according to the preamble of the appended claim 1. The invention also relates to a control means according to the preamble of the appended claim 6.
As is well known, there are devices such as notebook computers, small hand-held computers, or PDA devices (Personal Digital Assistant) for storing various information. In this specification, PDA devices refer to devices similar to the ones described above. In these devices, it is possible to store for example calendar information, notes, address information, telephone numbers, or corresponding data given by the user. This data can be reviewed by means of the display of the device. The data is typically entered in these devices by means of a keypad, but it is known that there are also devices available which are equipped with a touch screen so that the functions of the devices can be controlled by touch. The performance of PDA devices is constantly enhanced, and they already contain several features known from PC devices (Personal Computer).
To allow better mobility for people, there are wireless communication devices available according to prior art. In the field of mobile stations, increasing popularity has been gained by a portable mobile phone, which can be for example a digital mobile phone according to the GSM standard (Global System for Mobile Communications), operating in a mobile communication system based on a cellular network.
For some PDA devices, there are also expansion cards available according to a PCMCIA standard (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association), for connecting these devices for example to mobile phones, which thereby function as modems for the PDA devices. Thus, with the help of PDA devices and by utilizing radio waves, it is possible to transmit and receive for example telecopier messages, SMS messages (Short Message Service) and other text files in a wireless manner.
In connection with PC (Personal Computer) devices, portable computers, and wireless communication devices, different control means have become known for controlling the functions of these devices. Such control means include, for example, one or more keys located by the display, wherein a keystroke selects the desired control function indicated by providing the command of the function in writing, or a symbol illustrating the same, in the display in the vicinity of the key. In different situations, the control function selectable at a time is illustrated in such a way that the command representing the function is output to the display by the control program of the device, wherein the same key can be used to select different functions. The keyboards of PC devices typically also contain keys for moving the cursor up, down, to the left, or to the right on the display. One known control device is a mouse which can be connected to a PC device, and which comprises a control means, such as a track ball, for moving the cursor on the display of the PC device, and one or more control means, typically control buttons, for the purpose of e.g. selecting functions from the menu on the display, or for activating the menu itself. In connection with portable computers, a track ball and control buttons placed in connection with the keyboard and corresponding to the functions of a mouse have also become known, as well as a touch screen for controlling the cursor.
In connection with mobile phones, a known control means, disclosed in publication EP 0 755 142 A2, is a rotary discoidal control roll, placed on the side of a mobile phone, by means of which it is possible to move in a telephone directory displayed on the display of the mobile phone, and which control roll is pressed to select a desired telephone number. With the help of the control roll, it is also possible to move in menus and to select a desired alternative by pressing the control roll. According to the publication EP 0 715 441 A1, in a foldable mobile phone, a cylindrical control roll, rotatable around its longitudinal axis, can also be placed in connection with a hinge, substantially parallel to and on the same axis with the hinge. Thus, it is also possible to place a control button in the vicinity of the control roll, for example for the purpose of selecting and activating a function retrieved from the menu by means of the control roll. From publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,436,954 it is also known that a control roll placed on a hinge can be moved at least a short distance in the direction of its longitudinal axis, wherein the control roll also functions as a control button.
Furthermore, in connection with portable laptop PC devices, a control device is known which functions in a similar way as the aforementioned mouse, wherein one control means, i.e. a control lever, a control stick, or the like, corresponding to the track ball of the mouse, is placed next to the display located on one side of the housing part of the device, and the side opposite to the housing part is provided with control means, i.e. buttons, corresponding to the two control buttons of the mouse. The above-described control device is used for example in such a way that the control lever is controlled with the thumb, the first control button with the forefinger, and the second control button with the middle finger.
The features of wireless communication devices, such as mobile phones, increase constantly, and typically include functions for storing e.g. telephone numbers of persons and firms. In a known manner, there are also devices available, which contain two different user interfaces combined, for example the user interfaces of a wireless communication device and a PDA device. One such device of prior art is Nokia Communicator 9000, i.e. a communicator which has a first user interface, i.e. the PDA interface, whereby it is possible to store various data in the device, to have a wireless connection to the Internet network, and to receive for example telecopier messages, and which has a second user interface, i.e. the CMT user interface (Cellular Mobile Telephone), whereby it is possible to perform conventional mobile phone functions, such as receiving a call and selecting a phone number. The communicator described above comprises separate keypads and displays for the two user interfaces; the PDA user interface is arranged to be used in the opened position of the device, and the CMT user interface is arranged to be used in the closed position of the device.
Patent publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,763 discloses an electronic device, which also has various positions for different user interfaces. These user interfaces become available by opening the different housing parts of the device, wherein the device recognizes which housing part is open at a time. Each user interface has a separate keypad and display. The user interface is recognized by using a photo cell, which recognizes which housing part is open in the device. Known from portable laptop computers is also a switch, placed in a hinge of the device, which recognizes whether the device is in an opened or closed position. However, the electronic device disclosed in the publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,763 differs from the communicator in the respect that the device can be used by means of different user interfaces substantially from the same direction.
In devices of prior art, which comprise various user interfaces, as in the above described communicator, for each user interface, control means separate from other user interfaces are used, such as select buttons or keys for controlling the cursor. However, these control means increase the need for space, especially in cases when smaller and lighter versions of the devices are manufactured. A further problem is that the control means of each user interface often have to be placed in locations which are inconvenient with respect to the usability of the user interface in question, because the control means must not disturb the use of another user interface or cause interference in the use of the control means.
The purpose of this invention is to achieve an improvement in the state of art, and to enhance the usability of electronic devices considerably. An electronic device according to the invention is characterized in what will be presented in the characterizing part of the appended claim 1. A control means according to the invention is characterized in what will be presented in the characterizing part of the appended claim 6.
An advantage of the invention is that the same control means can be used in connection with two or more different user interfaces. Thus, the need for several separate control means decreases, and at the same time for example the space used by the control means is diminished compared with prior art. Another advantage of the invention is that the manufacturing costs of the device are reduced, since the number of control means can be decreased compared with prior art.
One special advantage of the invention is that the control means for the first user interface of the device can also be placed in a location, where it conventionally would disturb the use of another user interface. This appears from a device according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, in which control means, i.e. push-buttons, placed in the housing part in the opened position of the device and intended for operating the first user interface, are located in connection with the keypad and display of the second user interface.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the control function of the control means is arranged to be set automatically for the user interface used at a time, on the basis of the position of the housing part of the device, wherein the user is not responsible for selecting the function of the control means, whereby malfunctions decrease.